A Small Pain
by EuphemiaXSuzaku4ever
Summary: Something is wrong with the dog of the Zodiac. Everything seems fine, but nothing is ever as it seems. I don't own Fruits Basket. I decided to leave this as a one-chapter story.


"Tohru! Save me!" Shigure whined. Tohru giggled. Mii hit Shigure with his unfinished manuscript. She dragged him off to his office. He struggled to free himself from her death grip, but was unsuccessful. Tohru and the others ran off to school, eager to start the day. Except for Kyo, that is. It was only morning, and he wished the day was over already. The day went by slowly. Really slowly. The second the final bell rang, Kyo raced home. Tohru and Yuki gathered their things after cleaning the classroom, and began the walk home together.

"You don't have to work tonight, Miss Honda?" Yuki asked.

"Nope!" she smiled. "Yuki, I know Kyo likes to get home early, but why did he run off like that?"

Yuki sighed. He leaned over and whispered in Tohru's ear. Tohru's face lit up.

"Oh, I didn't even know! What am I going to make him for dinner? I should go to town and get something for him!" Tohru exclaimed. Yuki smiled.

"I think Kagura's got everything covered. Assuming she doesn't burn the house down again." he said. Tohru let out a breath. They reached the house, and took off their shoes. Tohru walked into the kitchen to find Shigure trying to cook. He was failing miserably. Tohru walked over to him.

"Shigure?" she asked. Shigure jumped a mile.

"Oh, Tohru. It's only you." he said. "I was afraid it was Mii coming to kill me."

She giggled. "Do you need some help?"

He looked at his spread. Shigure sighed.

"I thought Kagura was supposed to be helping me, but

I think she may have run off to do something else." he smiled. Tohru put on an apron and made a special dinner for Kyo. Shigure went to the fridge. "I was waiting for you to come home and decorate this."

Tohru turned around. She gasped. "It's perfect!"

* * *

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KYO!" everyone screamed as he walked into the room. Kyo jumped up from surprise. His favorite dinner was on the table: cod and salmon, with a small cake in the middle. Kyo was so stunned, he nearly fainted. Then came the anger.

"I don't need-"

"SHUT UP AND EAT IT!" a voice shouted. Kyo tensed up. He turned around slowly, and saw a fiery figure behind him. Kagura looked at him with daggers in her eyes. Kyo immediately sat and gulped down his food. Tohru smiled. Kagura sat next to him. "Happy Birthday, darling."

"I'm not your-"

"WHAT?"

Kyo shut up. When everyone had finished their food, Tohru got a knife to cut the cake. Kyo looked at it. Tohru had decorated it with a picture of an orange cat, and had written the words: "Happy Birthday Kyo!" In big orange letters. On the bottom, in small blue writing, was: Year of the Cat. Kyo looked at the cake, and blushed out of happiness. He actually smiled. He looked around the table at everyone. Shigure smiled with his dumb grin, and Kagura looked at him with lovey-dovey eyes. Then he looked for Yuki. He was nowhere to be found. Even better, Kyo thought. He looked at Tohru. Her tongue was sticking out, trying to figure out where to cut the cake. He blushed even harder. Tohru finally figured out where to cut the cake, and served everyone. Kyo loved the whole evening, though he tried not to show it.

* * *

"Bye Shigure! We'll be back later!" Tohru called. Shigure waved. They all walked off to school happily. Even Kyo, who had loved the pampering of last night's festivities. Yuki had went to bed early, so not to mess with the plans, and not to have a fight. Tohru ran to the crosswalk and pushed the button. She waited patiently with a huge smile on her face. Yuki and Kyo took note of this and smiled as well.

"Thank you, Shigure. You just barely made the deadline." Mii said happily. She waved goodbye, and ran down the road. Shigure was alone again. He went to the kitchen to fix himself a snack. He sat down at the table, and ate a sandwich. Then, he grabbed the newspaper from the day before. Shigure searched around for his reading glasses, and found his cigarettes next to them. He smiled, and put on his glasses. He took out his lighter, and lit a cigarette. He had just gotten to the sports section, when he felt his heart skip a beat. Then came a very hard beat. Shigure clutched his chest.

"What was that?" he asked himself. "Oh well, it's gone now…"

* * *

"We're home." Yuki called. Shigure walked into the entryway.

"I missed you all so much!" he said over-excitedly. "It's too bad Tohru's at work today, and not here for me to share my feelings with." he said. Kyo hit him on the head.

"Shut up, you pervert." he said. Kyo walked up to his room. Shigure rubbed the small bump on his head. Yuki walked into the kitchen and made himself a rice ball. Shigure followed him.

"Hatori will be here tomorrow for your check-up, Yuki." Shigure said. Yuki nodded. Shigure turned around.

"And I think Aya's coming with him." Shigure said. He walked into the living room. Yuki crushed the rice ball in his hands.

* * *

"I'm back!" Tohru called into the house. She walked inside. No one seemed to be awake. She shrugged and tiptoed into the kitchen. She saw Shigure bending over the sink, doing the dishes. She was about to say hello, when he suddenly grabbed his chest.

"Shigure!" Tohru cried, and she ran over to him. He turned to face her. His hand went down to his side.

"Oh, Tohru. I didn't hear you come in." he said.

"Shigure, is there something wrong?" she asked. He waved his hand.

"No, no, nothing's wrong." he said. "It's late, you should get some sleep."

Tohru hesitated for a moment, then walked upstairs to her room. She thought about what she had seen, but sleep took over.

* * *

"Shigure, are you sure you're okay?" Tohru asked him. He nodded. Kyo was at the front door waiting.

"Are we going, or what?" he shouted. Tohru spun around, then looked back at Shigure for a moment. She shook herself, then walked out the door with Kyo. Yuki came downstairs, rubbing his eyes.

"Where is that stupid cat going?" he asked.

"Well Yuki, we need groceries, so Tohru and Kyo decided to go on a shopping date." he said happily. Yuki suddenly became fully awake. He turned away, and made himself a bowl of cereal. One of the few things he could make on his own. There was a knock at the door. Yuki felt a small breeze as Shigure flew to answer it.

"Shigure!"

"Aya!"

"How I've missed you!"

"And I you-"

"Please stop that, you two." Hatori intervened. Aya and Shigure went inside to the living room, while Hatori walked into the kitchen. "Hello, Yuki. How are you feeling?"

"Fine. I'd feel better if those two weren't being idiots." Yuki replied. Hatori opened his doctor bag and took out his stethoscope. Yuki stood up and pulled up a chair for Hatori. They sat down, and Hatori began his routine exam. Yuki's lungs sounded normal, and he hadn't had an attack for quite sometime now. Hatori finished his exam.

"Your signs look normal. In fact they're better then ever." Hatori concluded. Yuki sighed. He had hoped that he would one day grow out of his asthma. That day hadn't come…yet.

"Let's have lunch together sometime!" Ayame said nosily from the living room.

"I would love to!" Shigure replied back. Hatori sighed.

"I'm going to take a walk." Yuki said. He walked out the front door. Hatori stood up, and turned to retrieve Ayame.

"Shigure, are you all right?"

Hatori rushed into the living room. Shigure's hand was at his chest, but as soon as Hatori appeared in the living room, his hand went away.

"I'm perfectly fine Aya, why do you ask?" Shigure chuckled. Hatori walked over to Shigure.

"What happened?" he asked sternly. Shigure closed his eyes.

"It was nothing, I just felt my heart skip a beat, that's all." Shigure said. Hatori raised an eyebrow.

"Shigure…"

"I was just so happy you asked me to lunch, Aya, my heart fluttered with joy!" Shigure exclaimed. Ayame's face still appeared worried, but he dismissed it.

"I'll see you on Sunday!" Ayame waved as he went off with Hatori. Shigure waved back. When they were out of sight, Shigure put his hand to his chest.

"It only happened for a moment…now it's gone again."

* * *

"Yuki! Kyo! Shigure! It's time for dinner!" Tohru called. Kyo raced to the table. Yuki walked over to his seat, and shot Kyo a dirty look. Shigure still wasn't at the table. Tohru called his name again, then went to his room. She opened the door to find Shigure hunched over his table, hand on his chest, breathing hard.

"Shigure!" Tohru cried, and she kneeled down to him. Yuki and Kyo came running inside.

"Shigure, what's wrong?" Yuki asked.

"My chest…"

Yuki stood up. "I'll call Hatori."

Kyo helped Shigure to his feet, then to the futon to lay down. When Shigure had laid down onto the futon, his breathing slowed some, but his hand didn't move from his chest. Tohru covered him with a blanket. She felt his head.

"At least you don't have a fever." Tohru said.

"Tohru." Shigure said. She leaned close to him.

"What is it, Shigure?" she asked.

"I need you to get me an aspirin out of the bathroom cupboard. Can you do that for me?" he asked. Tohru nodded, and ran out of the room. Kyo looked at him.

"What, does your head hurt?" Kyo asked. Shigure chuckled softly.

"Aspirin helps with heart attacks." he explained. Kyo's eyes widened, and he turned back around. Yuki came into the room.

"Hatori's on his way." he said. Shigure closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. Tohru returned with the aspirin.

"Oh no! Is he dead?" she cried. Shigure chuckled again.

"No, not yet, Tohru." he said. Tohru let out a sigh of relief. She gave Shigure the aspirin. He took it and chewed it.

"Were you having problems before this, Shigure?" Yuki asked. Shigure was silent for a moment.

"Yes…I was." he replied. His head felt fuzzy.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Kyo shouted. Shigure looked at him. His vision started to blur.

"I'm sorry…I should have…told you…" Shigure heard his voice fade. The three voices became muffled as he blacked out.

* * *

Hatori walked into the house. He heard a commotion coming from Shigure's room. He opened the door. Shigure was on the futon, unconscious; with Tohru, Yuki and Kyo next to him, tears in their eyes. Hatori rushed over to Shigure's side, and felt for a pulse. There was a small one, but it was irregular. Hatori sighed.

"He's alive." he said. Tohru smiled meekly, but they all knew they weren't out of the woods yet.

"What's wrong with him?" Yuki asked, wiping away his tears so Kyo wouldn't see them.

"I don't know yet. I need to examine him." Hatori said. They nodded. Everyone stood up and left the room. Hatori pulled the blanket off Shigure, and listened to his heart with his stethoscope. It was weirdly irregular, and Hatori knew exactly what the problem was.

* * *

"I know what's wrong." Hatori said. Tohru, Yuki and Kyo were all gathered around the kitchen table.

"Well, spit it out!" Kyo said.

"It's PVC's." Hatori said calmly.

"What?" Kyo asked, confused.

"Premature Ventricular Contractions." Hatori explained.

"What are they?" Tohru asked.

"It's a small condition that causes a person's heart to beat a little more irregular than others." he said. "He needs to take some pills, stop smoking and drinking caffeine and he'll be fine."

"Is that really all?" Yuki said. Hatori nodded. Tohru slowly stood up.

"He didn't have a heart attack?" she asked worriedly.

"No. Sometime's PVC's can feel like a heart attack, but there's minimal damage to the heart. I'll come back tomorrow with his pills." Hatori said. "In the meantime, try to make him feel comfortable, and DON'T let him near his cigarettes."

They all nodded. Hatori walked to the front door and started his car. Tohru ran to Shigure's room. He was still asleep. Tohru went back out to the kitchen.

"He's still sleeping." she said.

"We should finish our dinner." Yuki said.

"It's probably cold by now." Kyo said.

"I'll heat it up." Tohru said. She grabbed their plates, and put them in the microwave. Yuki and Kyo really didn't feel like eating, but they forced themselves to. Tohru ate her food in silence, then went upstairs to bed.

* * *

Shigure was asleep in his room, when the sweet smell of food made him get up. He opened his door, and walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning." he said. Tohru turned around.

"Good morning, Shigure! How are you feeling?" she asked.

"I'm as healthy as a horse!" he said flailing around wildly like the usual Shigure. Tohru smiled.

"Breakfast will be ready in a moment." Tohru said. "Why don't you go sit down at the table?"

"Nah, I'll go upstairs and wake up those boys." Shigure said. He wandered upstairs and knocked on each boy's room.

"Yuki?"

"Mhmmm…" he answered tiredly. "I'll be…right down."

Shigure walked over to Kyo's room.

"Kyo?"

"I'm coming!" he shouted. Shigure smiled, and walked back downstairs. Tohru had set the table, and was just sitting down when Yuki and Kyo walked into the room. Everyone sat down to eat, except Shigure. He went out and retrieved the morning paper and put on his glasses. He was searching around the kitchen for something, but couldn't find it.

"Shigure, what are you looking for?" Yuki asked drearily.

"I left them right here on the counter, and now I can't seem to…oh, here they are!"

Everyone turned around to see what Shigure had been searching for. He had a pack of cigarettes in his hand and was proceeding to light one.

"NO!" everyone shouted, and they all jumped on him. Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo all transformed, while Tohru took away Shigure's pack of cigarettes. Kyo stole his lighter, and Yuki took the unlit cigarette out of his mouth. Shigure sat up, bewildered.

"What in the world-"

"Hatori says you can't smoke your cigarettes anymore, and you're not supposed to have caffeine." Tohru explained. Shigure sighed.

"Hari has to ruin everything doesn't he?" he said sadly. "What ever will I do without caffeine and cigarettes?"

"Finish your novels on time." Kyo remarked. POOF! Everyone turned back, and Tohru turned around while they dressed. Shigure adjusted his glasses.

"Well, I guess I can try to quit smoking. But I hear decaffeinated coffee is horrible!" he sobbed. Kyo hit him over the head.

"Well you're gonna have to live with it!" he yelled. Shigure rubbed his head. Tohru sighed. She went over to the coffeepot and poured Shigure a cup of decaf coffee. She held it out to him.

"Here."

Shigure looked up at Tohru. She smiled. Shigure accepted the coffee. They all walked over to the table, and ate their breakfast in peace-until there was a knock at the door. Yuki got up and answered it.

"Hatori." Yuki said. Hatori walked into the house, and Yuki led him to the kitchen where everyone was eating. Tohru immediately stood up.

"Oh, Hatori! Would you like something to eat? I can make something for you if you like-"

"No, no. Thank you for offering, but I'm only here to give Shigure his pills." he said. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small pill bottle full of little pink pills.

"These are beta-blockers. They should help keep the number of contractions down a bit. If you have another big attack, call me." Hatori explained. He gave the pills to Yuki.

"Why can't I keep track of my pills?" Shigure whined. Hatori shot him a Look.

"I have to go. Shigure, take them once a day every day. And no smoking or caffeine. I mean it." Hatori glared at him. Shigure got the message. Hatori was out the door. Tohru sat back down. When everyone had finished eating, Yuki and Tohru cleared the table. Kyo went up to his room to practice his martial arts, and Shigure went and sat down in his office.

"Yuki?" Tohru asked as she washed a dish.

"Hmm?" Yuki said, putting a dish away.

"Is Shigure going to be all right?" she asked. Yuki looked at her. Tohru put down the dish she was drying. "I mean, he never told us about anything. I saw him…after I came home from work. He told me he was fine."

Yuki sighed.

"You never know with Shigure. He's a selfless person, no matter how much he tries to hide it."

It was Tohru's turn to sigh. Yuki smiled. "I'll finish the dishes. Why don't you go take a nap? You seem pale."

Tohru snapped her head up.

"Oh no, I couldn't do that! It's my job! You let me stay here if I do the housework, and-"

"Please? I don't do any housework around here, and I get to live here for free." Yuki asked. Tohru smiled a little bit.

"Well, I guess." she said. "I am a little tired. I'm going to go upstairs and rest for a bit."

Yuki nodded, and Tohru walked upstairs, and went straight to sleep.

* * *

"I don't think I'm going to get any farther on my novels today." Shigure said. He stood up and walked out to the kitchen. It was almost lunchtime. Tohru, Yuki and Kyo had all went out for the day. Shigure felt something nagging at the back of his mind, but he couldn't figure out what he was supposed to do. He heard a knock at the door. Shigure turned around and went to the entryway. "There was something going on today, I just can't remember what…"

He opened the door and was greeted by a man hugging him and toppling him over. Shigure opened his eyes to reveal Ayame.

"Aya? What're you doing here?" he asked.

"Shigure! Don't tell me you've forgotten our lunch date!" Ayame cried unhappily. Shigure gasped, then tried to cover it up.

"No, no! How could I forget! I was only teasing!" he said. Ayame smiled. They got up and went into the kitchen to eat. Ayame had packed a big lunch, complete with sandwiches, fish, and a salad.

"Wow, Aya!" Shigure said, patting his belly. "You make a great lunch!"

"Thank you!" Aya said. They smiled at each other. The front door opened and the trio had arrived back home.

"Shut up! One of these days-"

"Take your time, you stupid cat."

"Please stop fighting…"

"Tohru!"

Tohru looked up, and saw Ayame rushing towards her. Yuki and Kyo quickly delivered a punch, and Ayame was on the ground.

"Aya!" Shigure ran over and helped him up.

"What was that for?" Ayame groaned.

"You know what!" Kyo shouted. Yuki scoffed and went up to his room. Tohru went straight to the kitchen.

"What do you want for lunch, Shigure?" Tohru yelled from the kitchen. Ayame and Shigure walked into the kitchen.

"Aya brought over lunch, so I'm not hungry." he said. He felt a pang in his chest. Shigure walked upstairs to Yuki's bedroom. He knocked on his door.

"Come in." he said. Shigure opened the door. Yuki looked up from his school work. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out Shigure's pills. He gave them to Shigure.

"You can keep track of these, right?" Yuki said. Shigure nodded. Shigure walked downstairs. He went to the kitchen and got a glass of water. He took his pill. Aya ran over to him.

"Hari told me about your heart problem." he said concerned. Shigure chuckled.

"It's nothing to worry about, Aya. I'm fine." he said.

"That's what you said before you had that attack." Ayame pointed out. Shigure sighed. He looked at his cousin.

"If I have any problems, I'll be sure to call Hari." he said. Ayame took a deep breath, then gathered his things.

"Hari wants me to leave earlier than usual, so I won't bother anyone." he said sadly. Shigure was about to console his cousin, when Yuki walked into the room. The room suddenly got stuffy. Shigure figured he'd better do something.

"Okay. Well, bye Aya! See you next time!" he shoved his cousin out the door. Ayame was going to protest, but Shigure shut the door in his face.

"Well, then, shall we have some tea?" Shigure asked. Kyo groaned and went up to his room. Yuki and Shigure sat down at the table, while Tohru served the tea.

"So, how are you feeling?" Yuki asked. Tohru looked at Shigure, waiting for an answer. Shigure put down his tea.

"I know everyone is worried about me. But, you don't need-"

"Yes, we do!" Tohru blurted out. Shigure and Yuki stared. Tohru's face turned red. She quickly looked at the floor.

"It's just…this is your house…and you have a wonderful life…and Ayame, and Hatori, and Yuki and Kyo…" she looked up, tears in her eyes. "And me. We're your friends, and we love you. We don't want to lose you."

Shigure and Yuki silently sat there, staring for a moment. Tohru's face turned even redder. Kyo had been silently watching in the corner. Yuki closed his eyes. Tohru started to cry.

"Yeah, so don't die on us, you stupid dog…" Kyo said from his corner. Tohru looked over towards Kyo. Kyo entered the room and poured himself a cup of tea. Shigure looked at them, and tears formed in his eyes as well.

"I love you all, too." he said. Tohru couldn't take it anymore. She ran over to Shigure and hugged him. He transformed, with Tohru's arms clenched around him.


End file.
